The so-called psyche or butterfly is generated from
caterpillars
which grow on green leaves, chiefly leaves of theraphanus, which some
call
crambe or cabbage. At first it is less than a grain of millet; it then
grows into a small grub; and in three days it is a tiny caterpillar.
After
this it grows on and on, and becomes quiescent and changes its shape,
and
is now called a chrysalis. The outer shell is hard,and the chrysalis
moves
if you touch it. It attaches itself by cobweb-like filaments, and is
unfurnished
with mouth or any other apparent organ. After a little while the outer
covering bursts asunder, and out flies the winged creature that we call
the psyche or butterfly. (From Aristotle's History of Animals
551a.1)

Psyche was one of three sisters, princesses in a Grecian kingdom.
All three were beautiful, but Psyche was the most beautiful.
Aphrodite,
the goddess of love and beauty, heard about Psyche and her sisters and
was jealous of all the attention people
paid to Psyche. So she summoned her son, Eros, and told him to
put a spell
on Psyche.

Always obedient, Eros flew down to earth with two vials of
potions.
Invisible, he sprinkled the sleeping Psyche with a potion that would
make
men avoid her when it came to marriage. Accidentally, he pricked
her with one of his arrows (which make someone fall in love instantly)
and she startled awake. Her beauty, in
turn, startled Eros, and he accidentally pricked himself as well.
Feeling bad about what he had done, he then sprinkled her with the
other
potion, which would provide her with joy in her life.

Sure enough, Psyche, although still beautiful, could find no
husband.
Her parents, afraid that they had offended the gods somehow, asked an
oracle
to reveal Psyche's future husband. The oracle said that, while no
man would have her, there was a creature on the top of a mountain that
would
marry her.

Surrendering to the inevitable, she headed for the mountain.
When
she came within sight, she was lifted by a gentle wind and carried the
rest of the way. When she arrived, she saw that her new home was
in fact a rich and beautiful palace. Her new husband never
permitted
her to see him, but he proved to be a true and gentle lover. He
was,
of course, Eros himself.

After some time, she grew lonely for her family, and she asked to be
allowed to have her sisters for a visit. When they saw how
beautiful
Psyche's new home was, they grew jealous. They went to her and
told
her not to forget that her husband was some kind of monster, and that,
no doubt, he
was only fattening her up in order to eat her. They suggested
that
she hide a lantern and a knife near her bed, so that the next time he
visited
her, she could look to see if he was indeed a monster, and cut off his
head if it was so.

Her sisters convinced her this was best, so the next time her husband
came to visit her, she had a lamp and a knife ready. When she
raised
the lamp, she saw that her husband was not a monster but Eros!
Surprised,
he ran to the window and flew off. She jumped out after him, but
fell the ground and lay there unconscious.

When she awoke, the palace had disappeared, and she found herself in
a field near her old home. She went to the temple of Aphrodite
and
prayed for help. Aphrodite responded by giving her a series of
tasks
to do -- tasks that Aphrodite believed the girl would not be able to
accomplish.

The first was a matter of sorting a huge pile of mixed grains into
separate
piles. Psyche looked at the pile and despaired, but Eros secretly
arranged for an army of ants to separate the piles. Aphrodite,
returning
the following morning, accused Psyche of having had help, as indeed she
had.

The next task involved getting a snippet of golden fleece from each
one of a special herd of sheep that lived across a nearby river.
The god of the river advised Psyche to wait until the sheep sought
shade
from the midday sun. Then they would be sleepy and not attack
her.
When Psyche presented Aphrodite with the fleece, the goddess again
accused
her of having had help.

The third task Aphrodite set before Psyche was to get a cup of water
from the river Styx, where it cascades down from an incredible
height.
Psyche thought it was all over, until an eagle helped her by carrying
the
cup up the mountain and returning it full. Aphrodite was livid,
knowing
full well that Psyche could never have done this alone!

Psyche's next task was to go into hell to ask Persephone, wife of
Hades,
for a box of magic makeup. Thinking that she was doomed, she
decided
to end it all by jumping off a cliff. But a voice told her not
to,
and gave her instructions on making her way to hell to get the
box.
But, the voice warned, do not look inside the box under any
circumstances!

Well, Psyche received the box from Persephone and made her way back
home. But, true to her nature, she was unable to restrain herself
from peeking inside. To her surprise, there was nothing inside
but
darkness, which put her into a deep sleep. Eros could no longer
restrain
himself either and wakened her. He told her to bring the box to
Aphrodite,
and that he would take care of the rest.

Eros went to the heavens and asked Zeus to intervene. He spoke
of his love for Psyche so eloquently that Zeus was moved to grant him
his
wish. Eros brought Psyche to Zeus who gave her a cup of ambrosia,
the drink of immortality. Zeus then joined Psyche and Eros in
eternal
marriage. They later had a daughter, who would be named Pleasure.

The Greek name for a butterfly is Psyche, and the
same
word means the soul. There is no illustration of the immortality of the
soul so striking and beautiful as the butterfly, bursting on brilliant
wings from the tomb in which it has lain, after a dull, grovelling,
caterpillar
existence, to flutter in the blaze of day and feed on the most fragrant
and delicate productions of the spring. Psyche, then, is the human
soul,
which is purified by sufferings and misfortunes, and is thus prepared
for
the enjoyment of true and pure happiness. (From Bulfinch's
Mythology:
The Age of Fable, chapter XI)